From the get-go Dark Albion: The Rose War dares to be different. It leaps outside the OSR box, yet keeps one foot in the roots of fantasy gaming. By setting itself firmly in a low-magic, grim and gritty version of the 15th century it still has enough familiarity for a reader to be comfortable, but by opening itself up to allow for focus on social intrigue, political machinations and the complexites of of late-medieval British society it dares to be different from almost any other OSR product on the market.

The Ghost of Jack Cade on London Bridge showcases this. It's an introductory adventure for Dark Albion designed for 1st level characters. But it barely bothers with traditional dungeon crawls and looting. Instead it focuses almost exclusively on investigation and role-playing. By building on the details and setting information in Dark Albion, it shows that OSR games can be far more than just combat, dungeon crawling and role-playing. It can be immersion. It can be interaction with complex, nuanced NPCs who have motives and goals that exist beyond the presence of the player characters. Like Dark Albion itself, the Ghost of Jack Cade provides a world that lives and breaths as a whole. These aren't stock characters who sit idly while the players go off and do their own thing. It has an expectation of proactivity from the player characters, because the NPCs are certainly proactive.

The adventure itself continues what began in Dark Albion with evocative art, both new and period. It provides enough information for a solid night of gaming or two to three shorter sessions - but it can also serve as a setting supplement. It details London Bridge as a location that can be used in future adventures. This includes several static locations as well as a series of random charts that can be used to generate unique locations on the fly. This gives the adventure huge use beyond the scope of the depicted events - especially considering how important London Bridge is to the events of the period.

The adventure concludes with several hooks for the GM or referee to design a sequel, so between an iconic location, a solid adventure and seeds for future events it's a great jumping off point for a Dark Albion campaign. The only downside I could find is that gamers interested in a more "traditional" OSR experience won't find it in the pages of The Ghost of Jack Cade on London Bridge.

This module is a great first supplement in the Dark Albion line and really showcases the setting "in action." I'd highly, highly, highly recommend it.